Historic California
Posts, Camps Stations and Airfields
Camp C.J. Miller
Camp C.J. Miller was located at the Del
Mar Fairgrounds and Racetrack in Del Mar, California. The U.S.
Marine Corps occupied and used the racetrack facilities beginning
in 1942. The property was (and still is) owned by the State 22nd
District Agricultural Association, who offered (loaned) the facilities
to the Marine Corps for their use.
Marines from the 2nd Division out of Camp
Elliot, and possibly from Camp Pendleton, camped in the horse
stalls at the racetrack. They ran around the racetrack for athletic
conditioning, rode horses on the track, and practiced hand-to-hand
combat near the horse stables. Marine paratroopers practiced
beach landings with rubber boats on the beach adjacent to the
site. The Marines made no physical improvements to the site.
They discontinued their use of Camp C.J. Miller in 1943. The
fairgrounds and racetrack resumed operation in 1946 and the horse
stalls and racetrack have been used since that time.
There were no visible signs of former
military use of this property.
Source: Los Angeles District,
US Army Corps of Engineers